QuoteReplyTopic: Listen To: A Helmet of Gnats - High Street Posted: September 15 2010 at 19:18

In June the anticipated album High Street by CT based fusion band Helmet of Gnats came out. I was eagerly looking forward to it as I loved their s/t second album. Indeed, they deliver the goods, with stellar composition, musicianship and production.

"Four epic tracks, over an hours worth of
music, and plenty of musical virtuosity and tight grooves-that's what
you get on the new release from instrumental jazz-fusion wizards Helmet
of Gnats, called High Street. It's been six years since the release of their last CD A Helmet of Gnats II,
but Chris Fox (guitars), Matthew Bocchino (keyboards), Wayne Zito
(bass), and Mark Conese (drums), are back, and better then ever.

What's great about Helmet of Gnats are that they are not afraid to put
the 'prog' into their jazz-fusion style. Not intent to just mimick acts
such as Return to Forever, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, Brand
X, and Weather Report, these guys certainly have studied their prog rock
as well, and High Street pays just as much homage to Gentle
Giant, Yes, Camel, King Crimson, and Genesis as it does the greats of
the fusion era. Opener "Tsunami" is a quirky number with plenty of great
guitar textures, intricate rhythms, and complex keyboards passages,
bringing to mind classic Gentle Giant. "Tin Whiskers" offers up a bit
more atmosphere in spots, but also has elements of heavier prog mixed in
with some melodic jazz, delivering a real melting pot of styles. One
moment they are crushing you with heavy riffs and bombastic keys, the
next you hear some gorgeous passage that recalls Jeff Beck's Blow By Blow
period. Fox offers up a wide assortment of screaming solos and tasty
melodic runs, always supported by Bocchino and his layers of vintage
keyboards. It's all fusion on the engaging "Dozer", a real winner that
is sure to please fans of Return to Forever and the Chick Corea Elektric
Band, thanks to Bocchino's mind bending solos and textures, not to
mention the heavy grooves from Conese and Zito. The band gives us a
monumental epic in the closing title track, which is 30 minutes of pure
bliss. Here, Helmet of Gnats is in all their fusiony, funky, proggy
glory, with wonderful electric piano, Moog, Hammond, and guitar licks
flying about the mix while snappy rhythms get your toes tapping. Throw
in some extended solos and some catchy melodies, and you have a long
adventure that must be taken over and over again to fully enjoy...which
you will, trust me.

It's not often you come across an instrumental fusion album as perfectly executed as High Street,
but folks, this one earns every bit of its 5 stars here. This latest
from Helmet of Gnats is a prime example of how jazz-fusion and prog can
co-exist and co-habitate, offering up a heaping assortment of melodies
and jaw-dropping musicianship that is sure to thrill any fan of either
genre. Bravo!

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